Hygienist (RDH)

Registered Dental Hygienist - Fluency in English and Spanish

Location: Winters, CA 

Hours: 32

We are on the lookout for a compassionate Registered Dental Hygienist to join our small and mighty team of dedicated individuals at 32-40 hours/week! We place emphasis on establishing trusting relationships and are devoted to quality health outcomes, with the data and measure results to prove it. Our dental services include general dentistry for pediatric to geriatric patients. We provide as many services in house as long as it is safe for the patient, and in the event we cannot meet the need of the patient, we have several specialty partners in the surrounding areas who will care for our patient. 

As a Hygienist with Winters Healthcare, you won’t just clean teeth. You will be the primary partner with each of your patients, supporting them to improve their overall hygiene. We are an office that values providing education in a manner that is individualized based on the patient’s needs and understanding of their own oral health. We believe that oral health isn’t just about the teeth, but also about the overall physical and mental health of the patient. You will work closely with the doctor’s to check in on the patient’s oral health, as well as with our Integrated Health Coaches for the patient’s engagement in their health.

The ideal candidate not only has a strong perio knowledge, but is also someone who enjoys working with people, making connections, and building relationships. Strong communication skills, and the ability to establish effective, trusting relationships with patients, colleagues and the community is important to us. We are also eager to add someone to the team who is interested in community outreach and who would be interested in engaging with different groups of the community for early intervention and education. Can you see yourself here? We hope so!

Responsibilities:

• Communicate, collaborate and work in a team-oriented environment supporting our model of care
• Provide direct patient care: SRP, prophylaxis, apply sealants and fluoride, place medications intra-orally and to periodontal pockets as prescribed by dentist
• Provide individualized patient education and collaborate with team on community outreach events.

Qualifications:

• Current RDH license to practice in the state of California, and current CPR certification (within 6 months)

• Spanish fluency is required (read, speak, and write)
• Knowledge of electronic health records such as Epic and Open Dental 

• Ability and comfort building relationships with coworkers and patients
• Significant background providing outstanding customer service
• A passion and dedication for serving the health care needs of our clients

Hours:

• This position is 32-40 hours per week (4 - 5 days), with a minimum of one evening shift from 11am – 8pm.
  

Compensation and Benefits:

• Hourly wage range starts at $46 -$55 per hour and is dependent on experience and qualifications
• Health insurances: Medical, dental, vision, life, AD&D – 90% covered for employee, and up to 50% for dependent coverage
• Paid Time Off (PTO) and paid holidays off. (~27 days in year 1)
• Continuing Medical Education reimbursement and time off
• License reimbursement
• 401K retirement match program – 3% match
• Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
• Malpractice liability insurances include tail & wrap around coverage 
• We are a loan repayment eligible site with NHSC, OSHPD/HCAI, and CalHealth Cares!
• We promote a work-life balance – no scheduled shifts over 8 hours and we are closed on the weekends.
  

We are big on fit, and while we will assess that fit, we understand that you are doing the same. Tell us what your interests are and let’s collaborate together to do great things for our patients and our community!   For questions, email us at HRteam@wintershealth.org. 

View the full job description below:

Registered Dental Hygienist (RDH)

Reports to:        Dental Director

FLSA Status:     Non- Exempt, hourly

Summary of Duties:

The Dental Hygienist works within a model of team-based care within the organization and with the patient’s overall health in mind. The primary duties of the dental hygienist include scaling and root planning, prophylaxis, cleaning teeth and polishing teeth to meet the oral health needs of the patient. In addition, the dental hygienist may provide other preventive dental services such as placing sealants and administering fluoride treatments. The RDH provides coaching on appropriate oral hygiene habits as well as oral health education and its impact on oral and overall health, while building builds trust and rapport with patients and the dental team.

Essential Functions:                                                                                                     

1. Take vitals and perform patient screening/assessment, document patient dental history and/or chief complaint, assess dental condition and needs of patient
2. Review medical history with patient, record medical history and medication lists
3. Take X-rays
4. Provide direct patient care-perform treatment procedures-curettage, scaling and root planning, prophylaxis, cleaning and polishing teeth of all ages, pediatrics to adults.
5. Apply sealants and fluoride
6. Place medications intra-orally and to periodontal pockets as prescribed by dentist
7. Record periodontal charting
8. Administer local anesthesia and Nitrous oxide
9. Make impressions of patients' teeth for study casts
10. Take impressions for bleaching trays
11. Polish fillings and other metal restorations
12. Document lab procedures and ensure follow up
13. Teach patients how to prevent tooth decay and gum disease through proper diet and oral homecare
14. Clean and sterilize instruments
15. Participate in continuing education, organizational development, and attend staff meetings.
16. Support quality improvement and performance improvement efforts, and participate in related activities as required.
17. Other duties as assigned

Minimum Requirements:

Educational and Work Experience

• Graduation from an accredited Dental Hygiene Program
• Current California License
• Current X-ray and CPR Certificates

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Basic Spanish terminology is required (greeting the patient, basic dental terminology, etc.)
• Fluency (the ability to read, write and speak) in English and Spanish is a plus!
• Well-organized and detail-oriented with the ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with patients, employees and the public
• Experience operating standard office equipment
• Knowledge of electronic health records such as Epic and Open Dental 

• Ability and comfort building relationships with coworkers and patients
• Significant background providing outstanding customer service
• A passion and dedication for serving the health care needs of our clients

Other Requirements:

• Authorization and consent for Winters Healthcare to investigate candidate’s background with a consumer report for employment purposes, to evaluate candidate/employee for employment, promotion, reassignment, or retention as an employee

Additional Desired Qualifications

• Knowledge of county programs such as Family PACT, CHDP and Healthy Families
• Previous experience in a health center setting is highly desirable.

Physical Demands:
While performing the duties and tasks of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit, stand, bend, walk, work on irregular surfaces; regularly work with hands and reach with hands and arms; use hands to finger, handle or feel objects, tools, or controls; talk or hear; and taste or smell. The employee is occasionally required to stoop, kneel, crouch, squat, twist or crawl. This job requires physical effort and the ability to place or retrieve items at below waist level may be required.

The employee must frequently lift and/or move up to 10 pounds and occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds.  Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision and depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus.  The employee occasionally may be required to transfer patients to and from a wheelchair.

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Environmental/ Working Conditions:

The environment is a standard dental office environment.  Regular office hours are Monday through Friday. Occasionally, overtime may be required.  Office hours may be changed as business needs dictate.  The working environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee may encounter while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the job. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally exposed to toxic or caustic chemicals, required to work near moving mechanical parts and sharp instruments, and may be at risk of electrical shock. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate. 

Salary : $46 - $55